Five People Indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on Federal Criminal Charges of Wire Fraud for Allegedly Embezzling Nearly $500,000 from Trident Seafoods

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on October 1, 2012 released the following:

“ANCHORAGE—U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that five individuals with ties to Kodiak, Alaska were indicted on charges of wire fraud for their role in embezzling almost $500,000 from Trident Seafoods.

Isairis Wolfe, 32, of Kodiak, Alaska; Anne Wilson (aka Anne Sorio), 31 of Kent, Washington; Jeremy Smith, 30 of Kodiak, Alaska, Valerie Olivares, 34 of Corpus Christi, Texas; and Jamie Fathke, 28 of Kodiak, Alaska, were indicted on wire fraud charges on September 18, 2012. Four of the defendants have been taken into federal custody. The initial appearance for two of the defendants from Kodiak, Wolfe and Smith, are scheduled for this afternoon in Anchorage.

According to the indictment, between approximately January 2008 and continuing until August 2010, Isairis Wolfe used her position as the book keeper for Trident Seafoods in Kodiak to write Trident checks to four of her personal associates: Wilson, Smith, Olivares, and Fathke. The allegations include that Wolfe, using her check writing authority at Trident, drafted approximately 52 checks on a Trident account and made them payable to her personal associates—Wilson, Smith, Olivares, and Fathke—as well as to Wilson’s minor son, L.E. The checks were negotiated by Wolfe and her associates and they shared the proceeds. It is further alleged that Wolfe concealed the fraud by creating fraudulent accounting records so that the payments appeared to be legitimate.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Aunnie Steward, who presented the case to the grand jury, indicated that the law provides for a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both for each count, as well as restitution for the amount embezzled. Under the federal sentencing statutes, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Ms. Loeffler commends the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the investigation of this case and the Kodiak Police Department for its assistance in the investigation of this case.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Douglas McNabb and other members of the U.S. law firm practice and write and/or report extensively on matters involving Federal Criminal Defense, INTERPOL Red Notice Removal, International Extradition Defense, OFAC SDN Sanctions Removal, International Criminal Court Defense, and US Seizure of Non-Resident, Foreign-Owned Assets. Because we have experience dealing with INTERPOL, our firm understands the inter-relationship that INTERPOL’s “Red Notice” brings to this equation.

The author of this blog is Douglas C. McNabb. Please feel free to contact him directly at mcnabb@mcnabbassociates.com or at one of the offices listed above.